Beware of Falling Rocks

Day Five

Today's verses are I John 2:9-11, but I am mainly going to focus on verse 10, which says "Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling."

Recently my husband and I went out west and many beautiful sights were made available for us to see.  We were amused at some of the road signs as we drove through the Rockies.  Some warned truckers that their descent was not quite finished in ways I hadn't seen out here in rural North Carolina.  Humor always helps, huh?  Another sign I witnessed was one definitely not seen in these parts:  Avalanche Area.  Hmn.  Could those stones up there on high come down and wreak havoc?  Apparently, or the sign wouldn't have been placed there.

Now, sure, if you travel Highway 321 towards Boone you often see fallen rocks from all of the blasting that's been done over the past several years as that highway has been widened.  But "rocks" versus "avalanche" are quite significant word choices when one ponders her demise due to this...this...this stumbling stone.  This rock  group that has the potential to dent, ding, or destroy.

Did you notice though, that if you obey the rules and walk the straight and narrow that the dangers are minimized?  When one is aware of her surroundings, is wearing the correct protective gear, and following the rules of the road, it's awfully hard to mess up.  Kind of like this verse says:  when we abide in the light then there is no cause for stumbling.  It's quite simple, really.  Just mind.  Just do what the Good Book tells you to do--and don't do what it tells you not to do.  Why create obstacles when it's so much easier to just follow the simple map laid out for us?  

Yeah, that part of loving our brother is key here.  It just makes sense though, doesn't it, to love him, to stay in the light, and not to walk in the darkness?  I for one have a hard enough time staying upright with all the lights on; why put myself in darkness and try to avoid those stones that are there, lying in wait to trip me up and make me fall?  

In conclusion, this walking with Christ isn't always easy but I think we too often make it harder than it needs to be.  Stubborn pride in wanting to do things our way is the major culprit with this, would you agree?  Why not make it easy on ourselves and just submit?  Let's let our Great Shepherd lead us and when we stray, let's trust that He won't let us lie there helpless for long.  Let His light shine, friends, in your lives so that the darkness doesn't suck you in.